Raising the Holy Cross: Coptic Orthodox Churches Unite in Joyful Celebration
- The Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt and the diaspora began mass today, Friday, Tut 17, according to the Coptic calendar, to celebrate a religious occasion sacred to Copts...
- Father Abram Emil, the papal agent in Alexandria, pastor of St.
- Father Abram added that the Feast of the Cross is an important and respected holiday of the Church and the Copts and is celebrated twice a year, one...
The Coptic Orthodox Church Celebrates the Feast of the Cross
The Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt and the diaspora began mass today, Friday, Tut 17, according to the Coptic calendar, to celebrate a religious occasion sacred to Copts and the Church, corresponding to September 27 according to the Gregorian calendar.
Celebrations and Traditions
Father Abram Emil, the papal agent in Alexandria, pastor of St. Mark’s Great Church, said he presided over the Mass to celebrate the Feast of the Cross at the Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in Alexandria this morning, while Fathers priests presided over Mass in their churches, noting that the celebration will continue for 3 days until next Sunday.
Father Abram added that the Feast of the Cross is an important and respected holiday of the Church and the Copts and is celebrated twice a year, one in September and the other in March, indicating that the Feast of the Cross has a significant story, which is the discovery of the wooden cross on which Queen Helena was crucified in the 4th century AD.
Special Rites and Prayers
He explained that during the Feast of the Cross, a special rite and prayer sequence is established, which is different from the rest of the days, and that there is also a special melody in the prayer that is repeated on Palm Sunday, which means a ritual that is performed by the deacons and priests of a church, the cycle of the cross. Also mixed between Farahi tones and Palm Sunday tones.
Significance of the Feast of the Cross
Mohsen George, a member of the Council of Mullahs of Alexandria, said that the Hand of the Cross has a special dignity and sanctity among Copts, as it is considered one of the minor holidays of the Lord along with Jesus Christ’s main Lord’s holidays such as “the Annunciation, Christmas, Epiphany and Palm Sunday, Resurrection”, Ascension, Pentecost” and minor sovereign festivals, including “Circumcision, Entry of Christ into the Temple, Marriage at Cana of Galilee, Transfiguration, Maundy Thursday and Thomas Sunday,” and each of them has a special sanctity among Copts.